Today we’d like to introduce you to Paul Castagno.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Paul. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
Wow! Where to begin! Well the journey started back in my teens. I struggles a lot with self-confidence when I was a teen. I experienced a good amount of bullying and had a hard time figuring out where I fit in. Because of this I ended up walking around with a bit of a chip on my shoulder. My response to the bullying was to lash out. I figured if I did that people would stop messing with me. It worked to some degree, but it also didn’t help me make many friends.
One day my short temper got me into a pretty rough spot, and I ended up getting beat up pretty badly by 3 people at the same time. After I was all healed up I begged my parents to let me take martial arts. In my head, I figured if anything like that was going to happen again I wanted to have the tools to deal with it.
Interestingly enough, once I found a school and got started, the more I trained the less I wanted to actually fight. It was a great mental and physical outlet for me and my instructor and classmates were positive and supportive. I really fell in love with the training and it felt like it clicked for me. Over time I got in much better shape, became calmer, found genuine confidence. It was really transformative for me.
After a couple years of training my instructor asked me if I wanted to assist in teaching classes. I was really excited about the idea but obviously concerned about whether or not I would be good at it. After a few months of teaching I was feeling pretty good about it. Then I got a letter from a family of a student I worked with. It was a “Thank You” letter. They were thanking me for being such a positive role model to their son, and for helping find the confidence they always wanted to see in him.
It was that moment that I realized that I may actually be able to positive effect people’s lives doing something that I loved. I made the decision that someday I was going to own my own school, and try to positively effect as many lives as possible through the martial arts.
After some more years of training and teaching, I got the opportunity to open my school at the age of 23. I moved to Natick Ma and was all in. I remember being so scared. Wondering if I was going to be able to make it work, if people would want to even learn from me. I wasn’t sure if I even knew how to run a business. What I did know, however, is that I could teach. I told myself that I would teach with all my heart, every time, and figure out the rest as I went, and hoped people saw my passions.
I have to say that it really led me in the right direction. I learned the business side as I went, but always knew that I would treat people fairly, be genuine, and try to give them the best experience possible. I can honestly say I truly care and am invested in every student I work with. I believe it’s because of that I have been fortunate to find success. On top of that I believe in taking my work out of the dojo, and into the world. Meaning that we take the values we practice on the mat like patience, perseverance, teamwork, empathy, kindness, and more – and use them to better the world around us. That has manifested itself in everything from food drives to house builds for people in need. It is my firm belief that if you do good, then good comes back to you.
I am happy to say we are going on 12 years now and have grown every single year. Right now we are currently at 260 students of all ages and have had a waiting list to get into the school. We are actually moving to a bigger location as of May 1st 2017 so that we can continue to bring students into the school and serve the community around us.
We have built an amazing community where people are supportive and welcoming and I can honestly say I love going in to teach every day. Sometimes I can’t believe that this is actually what I get to do for a living.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
No way! Though the roads that are worth traveling rarely are – yes?
My first, and biggest, struggle happened just before I opened my school. About 3 months before I opened my doors my Mom passed away from breast cancer. She was an amazing woman and my biggest supporter. I was absolutely devastated when she lost that battle.
When I opened my school I was still suffering. I never really got a chance to process what happened. I even had days that I would sit at my desk, before students came in, where I wondered how I was going to find the emotional energy to even step on the mat. But I tapped into the strength that I learned through my training, and I made the decision to commit myself in running my school in a way that honored my mom’s memory. By working hard, teaching with passion, and being invested in everyone that steps on my mats.
Once I got through that, every other struggle didn’t seem all that bad. That isn’t to say that I don’t have stressful days, weeks, or even months – but I knew that I had the ability to get through it all. One of the sayings I have is “whatever you focus on, expands” So I tend not to focus on how stressful it is. I just put one foot in front of the other, know that it will pass, and know that I will find a way out the other side. Most likely stronger or more knowledgeable than I was before.
Please tell us about Revolution Martial Fitness.
I am sure, on the surface, we may look like just another martial arts school. But it is my goal to be so much more than anyone ever expects.
It starts with our name – Revolution Martial Fitness. It means we want to revolutionize the role that martial arts plays in the world, while helping people become more mentally and physically fit to defend themselves.
With that say, we have a broader meaning of self defense. Compassion, non-violent conflict resolution, personal responsibility, encouraging a healthy life style, having a deep appreciation for friendship, community, education, family and more is as important to the idea of self-defense as what is so obvious about the study and practice of the martial arts.
When it comes to the physical curriculum. We teach a combination of kickboxing and jiu-jitsu focusing on a self-defense mindset instead the pursuit of competition. That, in and of itself, is not the most unique thing about what we do.
I think what really sets us apart is quality of the instruction and the culture of the school. We really strive to teach top-notch classes every single day. We want people sweating, smiling, and learning everyday they step on the mats. All our teachers genuinely love working with the students each day and that really sets the tone for the rest of the school. All our students are supportive of each other. Experience students will help new students and no one walks around with an ego. I think it really makes it a positive place where people want to keep coming back to.
Another thing that sets us apart, which is also what I am really proud of, is the way we have been able to leverage this community we have built to give back to the world around us. One of our biggest projects are our community restoration event that we hold every year. This is where we partner with a non-profit organization to find us a project, and then raise money within the school to fund the project. After the money is raised we donate our time to making it a reality. This is usually building a house for someone in need of a suitable place to live.
What is also really cool about it is how we get the young people involved. All of the teens that help us with the event are responsible for crowdfunding for the project, and we mentor them through the process. They learn how to talk about the project, inspire people, put on fundraising effort, and document the process. Not only does this give them a sense of ownership over the project we do, but it teaching them valuable skills they can use in the future.
Overall we just want to positive change the world, one black belt at time!
Do you look back particularly fondly on any memories from childhood?
I was heavily involved in music growing up and that was a very big influence on my life. My piano teacher was really great at knowing how to push me in a kind and supportive way. I think it really influenced how I teach skills because she was really my first example of that. She taught me from when I was three all the way until I was about sixteen, so it also really showed me the value of having a long term teacher/mentor.
On top of that I went to a music camp for a week in the summer every year. It’s where I made some of my closest friends and made some really enjoyable memories. Many of the people I met there I am still good friend with today. It was a place a really could be fun and goofy self and everyone really accepted and appreciated that. It also really taught me the value of having a supportive community for people to be a part of.
Contact Info:
- Address: 245 West Central st. Unit #2
Natick Ma. 01760 - Website: www.revolutionmartialfitness.com
- Phone: 508-653-4882
- Email: senseipaul@revolutionmartialfitness.com
- Youtube:
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